Three institutional-grade validator companies – Figment, Galaxy Digital and Attestant – will manage the nodes of the Ethereum network that will power BlackRock’s newest crypto product – the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust.
The fund launched on Nasdaq on Thursday under the ticker ETHB, giving everyday investors a regulated way to hold Ether and collect staking rewards without managing a crypto wallet.
First day in the books
Trading volume in the debut was about $15.5 million, according to Nasdaq data, with just under 593,000 shares changing hands.
Source: Nasdaq
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seiffart called it a “very, very solid” first-day product launch. That said, ETHB fell short of two comparable Solana funds that launched last year — the Bitwise Solana Staking ETF earned $55.4 million when it debuted in October, while the REX-Osprey SOL + Staking ETF recorded $33.7 million on its first day of trading.
📣We are officially participating📣
ETHB combines Ether exposure and monthly income potential through the convenience of an exchange-traded product, offering investors a familiar way to acquire crypto and potentially enjoy rewards.
More information about ETHB ⏩… pic.twitter.com/41iKKaDqoD
— iShares (@iShares) March 12, 2026
BlackRock entered Thursday’s session with $106.7 million in the fund. Coinbase holds assets. According to the company’s product page, the structure is split roughly 80% Ether and 20% Void Ether. Prizes are awarded once a month.
The fund targets an annual yield of around 4%, which is generated by locking ETH tokens on the Ethereum blockchain through validators. Those validators – Figment, Galaxy Digital and Bitwise Attestant – process transactions on the network and earn rewards in return, which are then paid out to shareholders.
Most of the trading is done and we are at $15.5 million in trading volume for the BlackRock staked Ethereum ETF — $ETHB. Very strong for a 1 day ETF launch https://t.co/5f9VeA9ivq pic.twitter.com/MpwRqeHnwU
— James Seyff (@JSeyff) March 12, 2026
Fees and fine print
ETHB charges a 0.25% sponsorship fee, but BlackRock waives it down to 0.12% on the first $2.5 billion in assets under management in the first year. This kind of introductory pricing is a common tactic among ETF issuers looking to attract early investors before competing products arrive.
The launch expands BlackRock’s crypto lineup, which already includes two of the largest funds in the space. Reports from data firm Farside Investors show that the iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF has raised close to $63 billion since its debut in 2024, while the iShares Ethereum Trust ETF has raised nearly $12 billion over the same period.
What’s Next for BlackRock’s Crypto Push
ETHB isn’t the only new BlackRock product on the move. The company has also filed for a Bitcoin Premium Income ETF, which sells call options on Bitcoin futures and collects income for investors.
The Ethereum Equity Fund adds a yield component that the existing ETHA does not offer. Whether this divergence is attracting new capital or simply moving money from one BlackRock ETH product to another will become clearer in the coming weeks as aggregated inbound data emerges.
Featured image from Fortune, chart from TradingView
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